Minnesota defenseman Ryan Suter, right, is congratulated by defenseman Jared Spurgeon after scoring the game tying goal against Boston in the third period of Wednesday’s game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, April 8, 2014. (Pioneer Press: John Autey)

Two weeks ago, Minnesota Wild players hung their heads in the visiting locker room of the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, embarrassed by a 5-1 loss to a potential first-round playoff foe that reduced their hold on the seventh seed in the Western Conference to a point.

“We have to figure it out or we’re not even going to make the playoffs,” defenseman Ryan Suter said.

They did.

As the Blues come to St. Paul on Thursday night for the fifth and final regular- season meeting between the clubs, the Wild are riding a 5-0-1 point streak and coming off a playoff-clinching, come-from-behind victory over the NHL-leading Boston Bruins.

But the streak has rendered what could have been an interesting meeting into an ultimately meaningless game, and because of that, the Wild are expected to sit some of their best players against the Blues.

“I’m real happy with our team game right now, so I think it’ll be more a matter of individually what we need as far as making sure we’re ready to go (for the playoffs),” coach Mike Yeo said.

It’s not quite that simple, though. Beating the Blues on Thursday would get the Wild closer to playing their nemesis in the first round, and few teams match up well with the in-your-face Blues.

Certainly the Wild don’t; they are 0-4-0 against their Central Division rivals this season, and they haven’t beaten the Blues in nine games dating to November 2011.

As the top wild-card team, Minnesota will play the Western Conference division champion with the fewest points. If they’re going to avoid St. Louis, they’ll want the Blues — who have three regular-season games remaining — to finish with the top seed.

Anaheim is the other likely foe for a first-round series, though Colorado and San Jose remain possibilities.

But for now, the Wild are welcoming the “off days” that come with clinching a playoff berth early, something they failed to do last season — when they needed to win on the last day of the regular season to qualify.

“That’s what you want,” Suter said. “You don’t want to have to wait until the last day like last year. We have to continue to play well, though. You can’t take the next two games off then flip the switch on. I think it’ll be a good test for us preparation-wise.”

In an up-and-down season, the Wild are playing their best hockey. Their streak of points in six straight games set them up for the playoffs, but equally as important is the fact that they did it against good teams, including the Stanley Cup champions of each of the past five seasons.

“Listen, if we want a chance to do anything, we’re going to have to beat good teams and we’re going to have to be at our best,” Yeo said. “We’ve put ourselves in a position where we know what our game is and there’s confidence in it. I feel like we’re ready for the playoffs right now.”

But the playoffs don’t start until April 16.

So against the Blues on Thursday and the Nashville Predators on Sunday, the Wild’s task will be to continue building momentum while also resting enough to get mentally and physically prepared for their first-round series.

“We like the way we’ve been playing lately,” forward Zach Parise said. “We’ve been pretty stingy defensively. Now we can sharpen up some different spots and get ready for the second season. It’s going to be pretty fun.”

Chad Graff joined the Pioneer Press in April of 2013 -- long enough to cover three straight Wild playoff exits at the hands of the Blackhawks -- after working for the Philadelphia Inquirer and Boston Globe. He's lived in California and Texas, but most recently spent a decade in New Hampshire. He watched New England fans celebrate seven championships in his time there, yet somehow his only sports allegiance lies with Nebraska football.

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